Rise Of The Crash Dragon
by YonkoShanks
Summary: After witnessing Lisanna's "death" with his own eyes, Natsu felt weak and wanted to become stronger so he could protect aveyone precious to him. Taken on a two year training trip by Gildarts, Natsu will no longer be the Salamander of Fairy Tail. He will become The Crash Dragon, and he will return stronger than any of his friends thought possible. OOC Natsu. Natsu x Erza x Mira x ?
1. Prologue To Power!

**"Natsu!" -Person talking.**

 _"Natsu!"-_ **Person thinking.  
**

 **"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" -Magic.**

 **Hello. I decided to take this story since the author who started it wasn't updating it anymore.  
**

 **There is a small twist it from my own doing. I hope readers will like it.**

 **The Pairing: Natsu x Erza x Mirajane x ? (I'm still thinking on who to add.) I will only have 3 girls in the Harem.**

 **I do not own Fairy Tail or any of it's characters. It is owned by Mashima.**

* * *

 **One Night in Magnolia- Saturday**

A blinding flash of lightning flooded Magnolia as torrential rain raged unendingly on the peaceful Town. An instant later, the loud rumble of thunder crashed through the Town's graveyard. In front of a particular gravestone, a lean, muscular young man of average height with a slightly tan skin tone, black eyes, damp pink-colored hair sat down on his knees. He wore a sleeveless, gold trimmed, black waistcoat, left open and untucked, exposing his bare chest. He has a gold trimmed, black cloth around his waist that reached his knees, held by a leather brown belt with an oval-shaped silver buckle, he completed his outfit with white knee-length trousers with black ribbon ties and a black open-toed sandals along with a scale-patterned scarf around his neck.

Natsu Dragneel lifted his head slightly to stare with his dull, empty onyx eyes at the name imprinted on the gravestone.

Lisanna Strauss.

A week had passed since the cheerful, sweet and adorable Lissana died and at the age of fifteen no less. The tragedy struck the Fairy Tail hard making the once loud and lively Guild to become gloomy and sad. No one could believe what happened. But, no one was more shocked and sad as Natsu and Lissana's siblings. Mirajane Strauss stayed cooped up in her house, crying from the guilt of believing that it was her fault. Elfman has became withdrawn lately, blaming himself for killing his little sister. Natsu didn't even attend Lisanna's funeral -much to the surprise of everyone who knew of his friendship with the younger Strauss- as he waited for it to end before he visited the graveyard.

The Self proclaimed Dragon Slayer clenched his palms into fists with a stray tear traveling down his right eye as he thought back to events that took place a week ago...

 **Flashback a week ago**

Natsu Dragneel had no idea that his day was going to go so bad when he wake up. It all started with him eating all of Happy's fish earning him the ire of the blue cat which struck a fight between them. They were fighting under a tree until Lissana stepped in.

Lissana was a young petite girl with short, white hair and blue eyes. She wore a red dress that reached her knees. She placed her hands on her hips and looked down disapprovingly at her 'family', "You two are fighting again?" she asked.

"Oh, Lisanna. You're back!" Natsu grinned as he greeted his long time friend. happy to see her again after She finished her job.

Unfortunately, Happy didn't share his happiness as he began to complain, "Natsu's being mean! He ate all fish!"

Lisanna was about to scold her 'husband' for bothering their 'son' but, a voice stopped her from doing so.

"Lissana!" Elfman shouted as he approached the group. Elfman was a large, muscular man with tan colored skin, extremely tall. He has long white hair that he kept styled upwards in long, wavy spikes, his dark eyes possessed no visible eyebrows and his rectangular, elongated face has a stitched scar running down its right side, crossing his right eye. His attire was a typical Japanese high-school hooligans: it consisted of a dark blue jacket with purplish blue inners, held closed on the front by a line of large buttons, with similar buttons on the sleeves' back and the zip located on the high collar left open. His outfit completed by loose pants matching his jacket, held up by a simple belt, and traditional Japanese geta sandals. He was accompanied with his and Lissana's elder sister, Mirajane Strauss.

Mirajane was a slim young woman of below average height. She has long, white hair which was curled slightly at the ends, with two bangs framing her face and reaching down to her chest. She has a large strand cover her forehead freely, and had most of her hair tied in a high, larger ponytail on the back of her head by a massive dark ribbon. She has large blue eyes and a curvy, voluptuous body, with large breasts. She wore a gothic-looking, overly revealing outfit matching the tomboyish personality she had. She donned a dark, skimpy sleeveless shirt adorned with some light curved motifs on the chest, a pair of leather shorts held up by a studded belt with a demonic-looking buckle and thigh-high boots with stiletto heels, each bearing a skull adorned by a flower on their upper front parts. She also sported a bracelet shaped like a demonic arm around her right wrist, a ring on the same hand's middle finger, and dark nail polish.

"We have a job to do!" Elfman said as he stopped in front of them.

"Eh? But we just go back!" Lisanna replied.

"It's an S-Class quest! Nee-chan took one!"

At the mention of an S-Class mission, Natsu jumped to his feet barely hiding his excitement, "What job it is?!" he shouted with a massive grin.

"It's an emergency job to get rid of a monster called "The beast" the so-called beast king." Mirajane was the one to response. She then gave him a wink, "You wanna come? It will be a good experience for you." she smiled at his more than eager expression.

"YES! I'm in!" the Dragon Slayer shouted as he bounced up and down in excitement.

Unfortunately for him, Elfman didn't agree with his big sister's proposition as he immediately protested, "A man should protect his family on his own!"

"Oi! Don't hog all the fun!" Natsu shouted as he stomped on the ground like a child before they began to argue until it was decided that he won't go with them.

Moments later, the Strauss siblings walked away from a dejected Natsu as he sat pouting in irritation. Glancing at the retreating trio, the Fire Dragon Slayer felt a deep chill go down his spine. He got a horrible feeling that something bad was about to happen.

 **Hours Later**

Chaos was everywhere, The Town was completely destroyed. Flames were everywhere. Luckily the citizens were evacuated. The reason for that was the so called King of monsters.

Mirajane cursed herself for being so careless. She was on the ground bleeding and exhausted, her eyes took in the sight of the beast that was controlling her brother.

His size was exponential, with large arms that sprouted sharp claws, they were covered in thick fur, with his abdominal and pectorals prominent in the middle. His hair took on a mane-like appearance, his ears and canine teeth become pointed, and he had a pair of striped horns pointing upwards, starting from a plate on his forehead. His legs were dark hooves, and he also gained a pair of protrusions sprouting from his shoulders, similar in appearance to their horns. his eyes glow purple and the scar on his eye is much larger than usual.

After seeing Mirajane losing the battle against the beast, Elfman tried to Take Over it's soul but, the Beast's will was too strong as it still had some fight left. As a result, Elfman was the one who was taken over and was now rampaging through the town.

"Elfman! Pull yourself together!" Mirajane tried to reach her brother. but to no avail. Elfman approached her before raising his monstrous arm and bringing it down on Mirajane. The eldest Strauss closed her eyes waited for her death at the hands of her own little brother.

"Look out!" the sudden shout echoed through Mirajane's ears before she found herself being tackled out of Elfman's arm reach.

Looking up, Mirajane was completely flabbergasted when she saw who saved her, "Natsu... " she whispered.

Natsu grinned at her, "Just in time!" he said as he stood up and looked at the beast.

"W-what are you doing here?!" Mirajane asked in confusion. Still shocked at the turn of events.

"I had a bad feeling about this mission so I come to check it out." Natsu replied as he furrowed his eyebrows, "What happened?"

"I was careless. Elfman tried to Take Over the beast to protect me!" she told him while gripping her injured right arm, "But it's magic is too powerful! Elfman's lost control of himself!"

"What's going to happen to him?!" Natsu asked in panic. Fearing for his friend's safety.

"We need to get him to come to his senses before the beast takes permanent control!"

"I see! So we gotta beat him up!" Natsu declared as he prepared to attack the beast, "Snap out of it, Elfman!" he shouted as he started to fill up his stomach with flames. it grew out to an unusual size as he leaned back.

"No stop! You can't beat him in this state!" Mirajane shouted as she tried to stand, but her condition didn't allow her. She knew that Natsu was stronger than Elfman in normal circumstances, but now that the beast had taken over him. She doubted that Natsu would win.

Unfortunately, her shouts were ignored as Natsu placed his hands right outside his mouth in a grasping motion, "Fire Dragon's Roar!" with a yell, he let out at jet of flames from his mouth that were sent straight for Elfman. The attack hit the beast, engulfing it in flames.

Natsu smirked as he thought that the beast was beaten by his attack. His eyes suddenly widened when a monstrous arm headed straight at him and smacked him away, sending him flying like a rag doll much to Mirajane's horror.

"Natsu!" she shouted in worry. She won't handle it if he died because of her.

"Aghhhh!" Natsu groaned in pain as he clutched his abdomen, "Damn! That thing hit hard!" If it wasn't for his immense endurance, he would had been seriously wounded. He stood back up and slowly walked beside Mirajane.

"Idiot! What were you thinking?!" Mirajane exclaimed angrily causing him to flinch. She then blew a sigh, "Run. I will try to buy you some time."

"What?! Are you crazy?! I won't let you fight him alone!" Natsu immediately replied. He didn't come here just to get a beating and then running away like a coward!

Mirajane gritted her teeth. Why was he even doing this?! She had never been nice to him before! In opposite, she bullied and made fun of him! She was about to yell at him, but her little sister's voice stopped her.

"Mira-nee! I evacuated everyone in the town!" Lisanna yelled from the air as she was in her bird form, "What happened? And why are you here, Natsu?" she asked when her eyes caught Natsu after landing on the ground.

"Not the time for that! Run, Lisanna! Elfman was taken over by the beast!"

"No way!" Lisanna placed her hands on her mouth in shock. She turned around to look at her brother. She slowly walked until she was a few feet away from him.

"What the hell are you doing, get away from him Lissana!" Natsu shouted, but was completely ignored as the white haired girl began talking to the beast.

"What's the matter, Elf-ni-chan? It's me, Lisanna. Your little sister." the young girl spread her arms as if wanting him to hug her, "Have you forgotten Mira-nee too?" she continued as the beast's glowing eyes were fixed on her petite form, "You'd never really forget about us, would you? After all, Mira and I love you so much!" a bright smile adored her face as she reached for him, "Now let's go home... Elf-nichan!"

As she finished speaking, a loud whack rang through the area as Elfman's arm hit her with such force that she was sent flying a mile away.

"LISANNA!" Mirajane screamed in horror as she watched her little sister fly away. With sudden force, she dashed as fast as she could toward the direction of her sister with tears streaming down her face all the way there hoping for any deity up there that Lisanna was still alive.

Natsu was stunned into absolute immobility. His eyes couldn't get any wider then now. His lips and eyes trembling as he tried to call Lisanna's name but all what could get out of his mouth were breaths that came in short and quivering gasps. He tried to take a step forward, but he only fell on his knees and let out a gut-wrenching scream.

 **End of Flashback**

Natsu almost broke into tears. The only thing that stopped him was the image of a smiling Lisanna. He couldn't help but feel responsible for her death, if only he was stronger. He could have stopped the possessed Elfman from killing her, she would still be here with them smiling cheerefully making everyone lively.

He clenched the dirt in his fists tightly. He had to get stronger! He had to become the strongest so he could protect everyone one precious to him but, he did not know how to do that, he had no one to guide him!

A few yards away, a young woman was walking down the street, using an umbrella to cover herself from the rain. She was a beautiful woman with long, scarlet hair and brown eyes. She has a slender, voluptuous figure. Her amazing figure was covered with a custom-made armor by Heart Kreuz smiths, a blue skirt, black boots, and diamond shaped silver earrings on each ear.

Erza Scarlet was completely baffled at the Storm. It caught her completely by surprise. Luckily, she stored an umbrella in her pocket dimension. As she walked toward her room in Fairy Hills. Her thought wandered over the events that took place in the week, she was saddened by Lisanna's demise, but she knew that Mirajane and Elfman were broken by now. She felt sorry for them.

However, it paled when she tried to imagine what Natsu was feeling right now. in fact, now that she thought about it, Lisanna was the only friend he had in the Guild. She felt a pang in her chest when she thought about how the death of his friend must be affecting the boy. She heard that he witnessed her death with his very own eyes. It reminded her of her own situation. The despair one would feel when they couldn't save someone they loved. She, atleast, was a kid when she lost grandpa Rob however, Natsu was a mage and a strong one at that but, even with his strength, he couldn't save his friend. As she was just passing by the graveyard, she caught something from the corner of her eye. A damp mop of pink hair.

 _Natsu? Did he come to visit her?_

The Knight turned and walked in the direction of the Dragon Slayer. She noticed that he was in his usual sleeveless vest, and had nothing to cover himself from the rain, _Isn't he cold?_ she idly thought, but resisted the urge to smack her face as she remembered that the cold and heat didn't bother him.

Erza decided that the best thing to do right now was to do what Lisanna always have done, instead of beating him up like she normally do. She walked up to Natsu until she was standing right next to him, and noticed that his clothes were completely soaked. She frowned when she noticed his dull, empty eyes as he stared blankly at Lisanna's gravestone. To any simple mage, they looked dull and empty of any life but, to her, she could clearly see the regret and grief in them.

"Hey Natsu." She said softly, but got no response from the pink haired boy who continued to look blankly at the gravestone, "Natsu?" She asked again, placing a hand on his shoulder, but she still got no response out of him. Letting a deep sigh, she was about to forcefully turn his head to look at her. Before she could do, Natsu's voice stopped her.

"I-If… only I was stronger… " His voice was hoarse and weak, clearly he hadn't spoken to anyone for a while causing Erza to frown, "D-do you think she'd still be here with us… with us… if I was stronger?"

Erza's eyes widened in shock, he was putting all the blame on himself?! She looked at him and was taken aback by the look on his face. His eyes were lost, and he looked confused about what he should do. She had never seen him look so defeated. "Natsu… You can't blame yourself for her de-" she tried to comfort him but he sharply cut her off.

"No!" Natsu shouted, his eyes becoming misty, "It's my fault! Because of my weakness, Lisanna died! I couldn't even protect her with my body!… if… if I was stronger, I would have defeated that beast… … and Lisanna would still be here!" he punched the ground creating a hole. He abruptly stood up and turned around. The red haired woman was shocked when she saw his appearance. His eyes had deep bags underneath them, his skin was pale, and his cheeks were hollow. His frame was weak-looking as if he didn't eat for days.

"Natsu… how long have you been here?" She asked but she feared what his answer will be.

"… Wednesday…" Natsu whispered after a slight pause. He didn't care about what would happen to him, all he wanted was a way to get stronger. He missed the shocked gasp that Erza let out at his response.

"W-Wednesday!? You've been sitting here for four days!?" Erza exclaimed in shock, "What did you do about food?! Where did you sleep, Natsu?!"

"I… I didn't." Natsu whispered, "I didn't sleep or eat…I don't need to anyway." he spoke and began walking away.

"What do you mean by that?! You have to take care of your health, Natsu!" Erza scolded, but she was ignored by him as he just walked. She was then surprised when he collapsed face first, with a gasp, she dropped her umbrella and dashed at him, "Natsu?! What's wrong?!" she placed his head on her lap and asked him but, she saw his eyes closed and concluded that he passed out. She swiftly lifted him and began walking to Fairy Hills. She wanted to take him there so he could rest, even if it was only a girls dormitory, she didn't care. Her friend come first.

As she walked, she thought back to Natsu's state. Erza never saw Natsu so empty, he was normally so cheerful and lively. Sadness didn't suit him the slightest. Her eyes gained a determined glint as she made up her mind right then and there, she would help Natsu. There was no way in hell that she would let him go through this again!

As they walked away from the graveyard and into the streets of Magnolia, they both failed to notice a man watching them with a serious look on his face behind a pillar. He was a tall, muscular man with shoulder-length slicked orange hair and a stubbly beard. His heavily muscular body was covered by his outfit which was rather simple; he wore a long, black, high-collared and tattered cloak with shoulder plates; around his waist was a simple belt. Gildarts also wore loose-fitting dark pants, complete with an armored waist-guard bearing plates similar to the ones on his shoulders, tucked inside simple boots. His black eyes followed Natsu's figure as Erza carried him away, _He wants to get stronger, eh?_ A massive smile made its way onto the man's face, _I guess I've found an apprentice._

Gildarts Clive was a very long 100-year quest. However, he briefly stopped the mission and come back to Magnolia. He was completely devastated when he heard about Lisanna's death, the young Strauss was like a daughter to him. His sadness quickly turned into worry as he remembered that Natsu whom he also considered as a son, had a very close relationship with the ivory-haired young girl. So he searched for the young boy and found him sitting down in front of the gravestone.

As he was about to go and try to help his son figure, Erza showed up and took his place. Gildarts then decided he would just let the youngsters have their moments. He turned to leave but, he stopped dead in his tracks when he heard Natsu's words. Looking back at the brat that always challenged him to fight, he could see his desire to get stronger, the determination to protect his loved ones.

Truth to be told, Gildarts knew that he was getting older, no matter how much he hated to admit it. He was already forty three years old and was getting even older. The 100 year mission he took was dangerous and Gildarts wasn't sure of returning from it alive. That's why he wanted to teach his magic to someone who was worth it, he decided to take on an apprentice. It was the sole reason of why he stopped his mission.

He didn't find anyone worthy of it in his travels until he remembered the brats in Fairy Tail. There was Gray, an Ice mage and Laxus, a very strong young man. However, they both didn't have the things that Gildarts wanted in his apprentice. Gray wasn't someone to learn his magic as he was an Ice mage, it couldn't match. Laxus was arrogant and if Gildarts taught him Crash Magic, his arrogance would be limitless. That only left Natsu. The hot headed Dragon Slayer that had an immense potential, also he had all the attributes that Gildarts wanted in his apprentice. Not just that, but his will to protect who he hold dear was something to respect.

He cut his musings off when he found himself in front of the Fairy Tail's doors. He grinned as he made his forward. Instead of opening the doors like normal people do, the doors glowed white before being reduced to small cubes that was sent flying everywhere inside the Guildhall. He looked around and saw that the guild was empty which didn't surprise him much since it was night time. Gildarts made his way up to Makarov's office, he wanted to talk with the old man about his intentions of taking Natsu with him on a training trip.

The third guild master of Fairy Tail, Makarov Dreyar was about to lock up his office door for the night, before he heard footsteps behind him. Makarov was an extremely short, elderly man. He has black eyes and was growing bald with only the outer rims of his head containing white hair. He also has a thick white mustache. He has a black stamp of Fairy Tail that covers his entire chest area. His outfit consisted of a white shirt with a black Fairy Tail stamp in the middle, which covered by an orange hoodie. His attire was completed with matching orange shorts and an orange and blue stripes designed jester hat.

He turned his head and was shocked when he saw Gildarts Clive, the guild's Ace. He couldn't believe that he was here, he thought that he had been on the century mission, "Gildarts?! What are you doing here?!"

"Hello to you too, Master." Gildarts said sarcastically.

Makarov just sighed, "Hello. Now, can you tell what you are doing here? I thought you were on the 100 year quest." Makarov stated, wondering what was going on.

"Well, there's something I want to talk to you about." Gildarts said with a sudden serious expression on his face, something that was rare for the orange haired man, the look caused Makarov to become serious too, if Gildarts was like, then it wasn't something to take lightly.

The old man raised an eyebrow, "Oh really? And what exactly do you want to talk about?" he hoped it was nothing bad.

"I want to talk to you about Natsu." The answer made Makarov even more confused. He knew the boy was having a hard time now and wondered what the Ace of Fairy Tail wanted from him.

"Natsu? What about him?" he asked.

"I want to make him my apprentice." Gildarts grinned widely.

Sweat started to cover Makarov's face, it was not looked like Gildarts was joking. A vision appeared before his sight: Natsu marching through the city smashing buildings with Crash Magic and breathing Fire from his mouth destroying everything left and right. Gildarts poker faced as the old man fainted from horror and shock.

 **With Natsu and Erza**

Erza sighed as she watched Natsu sleep. Just as she thought, some of the girls tried to tell her it was against the rules for boys to be at Fairy Hills, but as soon as they saw how Natsu looked with a sharp glare from her, they stayed quiet and let the Titania carry the Dragon Slayer to her room.

After they arrived at her room, Erza had woke Natsu up and made him sit at her table while she made him something to eat, which the Dragon Slayer was grateful for, before she lead him to her room and let him sleep on her bed. Natsu practically passed out as soon as his head hit the pillow. Erza absently stroked Natsu's hair as she thought about the look on Natsu's face earlier. She could not forgot that lost look in his eyes for a long time, his state had hit her hard and she desesperetly wanted to help her friend, He looked so defeated, completely different from how he usually act. J _ust how hard did Lisanna's death hit you, Natsu?_ Erza mentally thought with a frown on her beautiful face. _I never want to see that look on your face again, the Natsu I know should never look like that_. But as much as she thought about it, she didn't know how to help him, she was never one to confort people when they were down.

 _Just how am I going to help you, Natsu?_ Erza thought in distress feeling useless for once in her life.

 **The Next Day**

Natsu groaned as his eyes fluttered open, before he shut them when the light hit his face. He felt a soft surface underneath him and a warm blanket covering him, and wondered where he was. Memories from last night flooded his brain and his eyes widened. _Erza must brought me here._

He heard the door open and saw Erza walk in. He saw a look of surprise cross her face before she smiled at him, "Glad to see you're up, Natsu. I thought you were going to sleep all day."

Natsu chuckled forcefully, "Yeah, well I feel like I could." he faked a chuckle hoping that she didn't catch it.

Erza frowned when she heard Natsu's fake laugh, He must still be feeling gave him a small smile, "Come along, Natsu, we're going to go get some breakfast."

"O-Okay, Erza." Natsu said before he got out of Erza's bed, noticing how wet it was. He turned to Erza with an apologetic and slightly fearful look hoping she won't beat him up for ruining her bed, "S-Sorry about your bed Erza, I'll clean it up." He said and was about to do so but, Erza waved him off much to his slight surprise.

"Don't worry about it Natsu, I'll clean it up later. Besides, I let you sleep in my bed so you shouldn't feel bad about it." Erza spoke softly, not wanting Natsu to feel worse than he already does. She had caught his fear and felt bad. She always hated it when he looked at her with fear filled eyes.

"Okay, Erza." Natsu gave her a small smile before he walked towards the door. He was caught off guard by Erza's attitude but didn't show it. _She must feel pity for me._ He thought.

Erza smiled at him and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Come on, let's go to the guild. I'm sure people want to know how you're doing, and if Gray tries to fight you, I'll have your back." she was sure that he won't be in the mood to fight now.

As they walked out of Fairy Hills and towards Magnolia, Erza kept glancing in Natsu's direction and frowned when she noticed that he still had a slightly lost look in his eyes.

They walked for about 15 minutes before Erza stopped in front of a café, prompting Natsu to stop as well. Natsu breathed in the sweet aroma coming from the café and felt his mouth water at the smell. He followed Erza inside and they looked at the menu on the wall before they ordered their food.

They sat down at a table and waited for their food to be prepared. Natsu forced a smile, "Thanks for letting me stay with you last night, if you didn't I would probably still be at the graveyard." His voice cracked a little at the end. He was in her debt and he will return the favor someday.

Erza frowned, "It was no problem Natsu, it was the least I could do for you." She said softly, placing her hand on his. Warm. She thought as she squeezed his hand.

Natsu gave her another forced smile, though this one appeared to be a bit genuine. Natsu looked down at the food that was set in front of him, and whispered "Thank you Erza, I can't thank you enough."

 **Later**

The Guild was back to its usual rowdy self, though you could tell that people were still mourning the death of Lisanna. Currently, the Guild was having one of their infamous brawls, and that was the scene that Natsu and Erza walked in on. The two had to duck In order to dodge the flying tables and people.

They both ignored the brawl and headed over to a table and sat down, "Well, looks like the Guild hasn't changed much." Natsu commented, normally he would be the first to fight but now that Lisanna died, he couldn't.

"Yeah, though they were really sad, I suppose they decided that Lisanna would want them to be happy." Erza's words struck Natsu deep. She was right, Lisanna wouldn't like it if she saw him like that. He could almost see her smiling face in front of his eyes, her lips opening and telling him to move on.

A tear left his eye as he bowed his head to Erza, "Thank you so much."

"Y-you're welcome." Erza was a little shocked at his words. She didn't do anything that deserved his Thanks.

The two then heard the Master's voice coming from right behind them, "Ah, Natsu! Just the person I was looking for!"

They both turned and saw the Master wearing his usual outfit, and saw that while he looked laid back, there was a seriousness in his eyes that instantly made their backs straighten. "What do you need Master?" Natsu asked nervously, he hadn't destroyed anything in weeks! What did he want with him!

"Follow me to my office." Makarov said before he turned on his heel and walked towards his office, Natsu nervously trailing behind him. He waved at Erza one last time which returned.

When they entered his office, Natsu was surprised to see Gildarts there, who greeted Natsu with a smile on his face. "Yo Natsu! You've grown a lot!"

"What are you doing here Gildarts?" Natsu asked with a raised eyebrow, wasn't the geezer in a mission?

"Well, I have a proposition for you. Something that will help you get stronger." Gildarts declared and grinned when Natsu almost jumped at him.

"You can help me get stronger? How!?" Natsu practically yelled. This was exactly what he wanted! Getting stronger was his first objective now!

Gildarts smirked, "How would you like to become my apprentice?"

Natsu was shocked at Gildarts words. Becoming the apprentice of Fairy Tail's strongest mage? He didn't know what to think of this, could he become stronger if he take Gildarts to his offer?

 **The Next Day**

"You're going to what?!" Erza asked in shock as Natsu informed her with his plans. She and Natsu was sitting on a table inside the Guildhall.

"I'm going with Gildarts on a training trip." Natsu repeated, "He told that he can make me stronger if I go with him. You know, I can't pass up an opportunity like this." his voice held such desperation that it made the red haired woman flinch.

Her stomach started to twist in knots. She knew that he couldn't pass this up. Too much was on the line for him. He believed that he could make it up to Lisanna. But at the same time, she was worried. She promised herself that she would help Natsu, but how could she do that if she couldn't be there for him? For a day, she was thinking of a way to help him and finally found a way. She would train with him and hopefully make him stronger than ever but, now that Gildarts offered him his help, she knew that it will be better. The Crash mage was an extremely powerful man and with his guidance, Natsu will surely become strong however, she was still worried. From what she knew, Gildarts was still on a 100 year mission, what if he decided to continue the quest with Natsu?, "How long are you planning to be gone?" She asked, trying to hide her worry but, Natsu saw through it and smiled sadly.

"Probably two years or so. I won't return until I'm strong enough." he replied honestly. He was going to train harder than anyone in Fiore. He felt Erza's hands on his and gasped slightly as warmth spread through his body. He locked eyes with her and felt all the pain and sadness melt away the longer he gazed into her brown eyes.

"Just promise me you'll be safe, okay?" Her request surprised him, he had never heard her say anything like that before. Sure, she always cared about the safety of everyone in the guild, but she had never used that much sincerity and worry in her words, his heart skipped a beat. It felt kind of nice seeing the usual strict knight worried about him of all people. He gave her his classic grin, lifting her spirits at the sight of it.

"Don't worry about me, Erza. I'll be back and better than ever!" his words relieved Erza, but she would always worry about him, she couldn't help it.

"You idiot, I'll always worry." Erza shook her head but smiled softly, "So when do you leave?" she wanted to spend some time with the Pinkette. The sudden urge to do so surprised even herself, but she just assumed that it was what friends would do.

"Oh, We're departing tomorrow. Gildarts said that we shouldn't waste time." Natsu regretted his words as he saw Erza lower her head in dejection. He quickly tried to tell her that he will ask Gildarts for more time but, the red head waved him off.

"No Natsu. Gildarts is right. The sooner you leave, the sooner you can began your training." she told him in rassurance which helped Natsu feel better.

The two were silent for a few minutes, the only noises filling their ears was the chatter of their guild mates. Erza then remembered a small matter that she forgot, "What about Happy, Natsu? Are you going to take him with you?" she asked. She would like to take care of Happy while he was gone.

"Hmmm, no I won't take him with me. I know the best person to take care of him." Natsu abruptly stood up, causing Erza's focus to immediately be drawn to him. He gave her a soft smile, "You have already done. I won't burden you with Happy."

 **Later**

Mirajane Strauss was paying her respect in front of Lisanna's gravestone. She turned her head when she heard footsteps and was surprised when she saw Natsu walking with flowers in his hands, "W-What are you doing here, Natsu?" She asked, surprised that he was here.

"I thought I should at least pay my respects before leaving." he told her, smiling sadly as he placed the bouquet of flowers in front of Lisanna's grave.

Mirajane smiled at him, "I see. Thank you, Natsu." She told him, pulling her hair back behind her ears. She then gasped when she finally remembered his last words, "W-wait! W-what do you mean by leaving?!"

"I'm leaving on a training trip with Gildarts." he replied, getting the white haired girl to widen her eyes in shock.

"G-gildarts?! But isn't he on that mission?!"

"He interrupted the mission and come back, that when he asked me if I wanted to go with him." Natsu explained.

"I-I see.." Mirajane slightly stuttered. She wasn't going to admit out loud, but she will really miss the pink haired boy. He always made the Guild lively, how could they go without him for two years? She looked back at Lisanna's gravestone with a frown on her angelic face.

"I'm sorry...Mirajane.." Mirajane gasped at his apology and looked up at him. She couldn't see his face as he hid them behind his hair.

"Why are you apologizing for...Natsu?" She asked, confusion clear in her tone.

"It's for not being able to save her. To be honest with you...I'm blaming myself for Lisanna's death. I know I shouldn't, but that's how I feel." He told her as he frowned, remembering his friend's death, "I was there... Yet I didn't save her! I...I just can't help but blame myself...Lisanna was my friend and I..." His eyes widened when he felt Mirajane reach up and wrap her arms around him. She pulled Natsu closer to her in the hug. His head on her chest, "M-Mirajane.." he stuttered in slight shock. Mirajane, MIRAJANE was hugging him?! He almost thought that he was dreaming. Never in his life he thought that the mean and scary girl would hug him.

"Please don't blame yourself...Natsu..." Mirajane told him. Natsu could hear her voice being a little shaky. "Natsu...I didn't know that you blamed yourself for her death. But please don't...if anyone should be blamed for her death, it should be me..." Natsu's eyes widened at her words, "You and Elfman...both of you shouldn't blame yourselves. So, please...don't..." It was the last thing Natsu wanted to hear now. He placed his hands on her shoulder and pushed her back, surprising her as she gave a gasp.

"Then don't blame yourself either!" He yelled softly. Mirajane gasped at his words. "Mira-chan...If you want me and Elfman to stop blaming ourselves, then stop doing it too! Her death wasn't your fault!" he exclaimed as he brought his face closer to hers, looking into her wide blue eyes deeply.

"But..." Mirajane tried to argue, but she was cut off immediately.

"No buts! I'll stop blaming myself for Lisanna's death and so should you...so please...don't blame yourself..." He told her. Mirajane eye's widened. Tears started to fall down her eyes and when Natsu saw this, he pulled her back into the hug. Mirajane couldn't help but let her tears fall from her eyes as they soaked Natsu's vest. He didn't mind though. He knew Mirajane never showed it, but he had this feeling that she blamed herself for Lisanna's death. However, it wasn't her fault. It wasn't Elfman's fault. It wasn't his. Lisanna did what she did because she loved her brother and sister.

The two of them stayed like this for a couple of minutes. Mirajane's crying slowly came to a stop. She pulled away from him and wiped any remaining tears from her eyes. Natsu noticed a tear escape from her right eye that she missed and lifted his hand to her face to wipe it away from her. Mirajane blushed at the feeling of his fingers across her face and looked at him. He was grinning at her. "Thank you…." Mirajane answered, her face flushed. Her heart began to beat faster when he gave a warm smile, "When are you leaving?" she asked as she thought of an idea.

"Tomorrow. Why?" asked Natsu in confusion.

"Would you like for me to cook you some food before you leave?" she offered and was surprised when he wrapped his arms around her waist. She blushed at the closeness and could feel her chest pressing against his.

"Really?! That'd be cool! Food for me to take will be great! I don't think Gildarts know how to cook. So I will probably starve to death with him!"

 **With Gildarts**

The Crash mage suddenly sneezed as he continued to think of the torture err training he should put his new apprentice through.

 _I wonder if I am getting a cold?_

 **With Natsu and Mirajane**

The white haired beauty giggled at Natsu's _'faith'_ in his soon to be mentor, "Of course, I will finish it by tonight."

"Oh Thanks! You're the best, Mira!" Natsu exclaimed in excitement as he unknowingly lifted the woman by her waist and spun her around. A small squeal escaped her mouth before it transformed into laughter for the first time in days.

 **Early Next Morning**

Erza let out a dejected sigh as she waited for Natsu to come. She crossed her arms under her big bust and leaned against a pillar. She had the feeling that she was going to terribly miss him. The sudden feeling both bothered and surprised her. But, no matter how much she wanted him to stay, she couldn't get in the way of his ambition of becoming stronger. She stopped her thoughts when a person came into her view and she recognized her immediately.

Mirajane was slowly walking toward the place that Natsu told her her he will be this day. She was dreading the moment he would leave and she won't see him for two years. She knew that she shouldn't be so dependent on Natsu. But, couldn't help it as his mere presence did nothing but to calm and comfort her after her sister's demise.

That was when she caught something that catched her attention. jolting her out of her thoughts. She glanced ahead to see Erza.

"Erza?"

"Mirajane?"

They asked at the same time, causing an awkward silence to fell. Erza cleared her throat and spoke, "What are doing here, Mirajane?" she asked her rival or rather her ex-rival.

"I could ask you the same thing, Erza." Mirajane retorted.

"W-well, I come to say goodbye to Natsu." The red haired woman said before frowning, "And you?"

"The same thing as you." replied Mirajane.

"I see."

Another awkward silence fell between them. But, it was justified. After all, their entire lives, all they did was fighting and insulting each other. As to save them from the silence, Natsu appeared with Gildarts in tow. The Dragon Slayer was carrying a huge backpack that looked like it was going to burst from how much it was stretched. Gildarts had only a bag that he had on his right shoulder.

"Yo!" Natsu greeted with a grin as Gildarts raised an eyebrow when he saw the two young girls.

"We came here to see you off." Erza spoke to him as the two men stopped walking. She then bowed to Gildarts, "Please take care of him." she requested.

Gildarts sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, "Yeah."

They sighed as silence fell on them. It was time. Erza stepped up to hug Natsu first, "Stay safe and don't do anything stupid." Natsu returned the hug with a soft smile. Erza stepped back and allowed Mirajane to hug Natsu this time.

"Stay safe and try to not become a pervert like him." she whispered, causing him to sweat drop at her advice, like hell he will become a womanizer like Gildarts! "I will take care of Happy, don't worry about him." she whispered again gaining a nod of thanks from him.

"I will be back before you know it! Take good care of the Guild and make sure the others dosen't destroy it!" he joked, trying to lift the mood which worried as the two women chuckled at his ironic words.

Gildarts wiped an imaginary proud tear from his eye. His apprentice already took after him and become a ladies man! He already got two of the most beautiful women falling for him!

It was time and the two men began walking away. It wasn't long before the girls finally lost sight of the Pinkette and white specks in the distance.

 **Two Days Later**

Natsu and Gildarts were seated at a campfire. They traveled for two days and so far all they had done was eating and sleeping. Natsu wouldn't have minded it so much if something interesting happened, but NOTHING happened. Not a single monster attack, magic battle, anything. It was starting to frustrate him to no end! "When are we going to start training?!" he finally asked what was in his mind for two Days.

"Huh, did you say something?" His 'mentor' questioned, looking up from his food.

Natsu facepalmed, he thought going training with Fairy Tail's Ace would help him, but so far nothing has happened. They were in the woods around Clover Town, camping out. Natsu had no problem with that part of the experience, he liked the forest. He grew up in one, which helped a lot.

Gildarts blew out a sigh as he saw Natsu's frustration, "Alright! We'll begin." he said much to his apprentice's joy, "First, time to see what you're made of. Just come at me with with all what you've got and we'll go from there on how to train these two years." he told his pupil who was more than eager. Gildarts then stood with a relaxed pose in front of Natsu.

"Alright!" Natsu shouted as he jumped to his feet. He ignited his fists in flames and grinned widely, "Here I come, Gildarts!" he shouted as he charged head on. He cocked back his right arm. His hand clenched into a fist that was engulfed in flames, **"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"** he shouted as he thrusted his fist forward aiming at Gildarts.

 _That's the first thing I need to improve in him. Not to charge at your opponent blindly._ Gildarts thought as he blocked the fist with the palm of his right hand. An explosion rang behind the Crash mage but didn't bother him.

"First lesson: don't charge head on." Gildarts declared as Natsu was struggling to overpower him. He then grabbed his wrist and throw Natsu into a tree, causing it to break and fall.

Natsu grunted in pain, that old man was a damn monster just like he remembered! He then stood up and ignited his feet in flames, using as jet-propulsion he flew up in the air above the older man. He the spun in the air toward his opponent's head with a flaming spin kick, **"Fire Dragon's Claw!"**

Gildarts put an arm up to block the kick. The Flames disappeared. Natsu was shocked. Both by how easily his kick was blocked and the pain he felt from hitting the Crash mage's arm. It was like hitting a metal pole!

Fairy Tail's Ace then grabbed Natsu's ankle and twisted it to spin the boy once before slamming him onto the ground hard enough to crater it slightly. _His speed need some work too._ Gildarts thought as he retracted his arm.

Natsu growled as he quickly shook off the shock and lifted his body up by placing his hands on the ground and kicking himself up. He quickly brought his left leg, aiming a kick. But it was also blocked. Natsu didn't give up and continued to attack Gildarts with his fists covered in flames.

Every punch was blocked. No matter how hard Natsu punched, he couldn't land a hit. Sweat started to cover his body as fatigue got to him the more he continued his assault on the Crash mage. He finally ended his attack as he understood that it won't do much. He jumped backwards, making some distance between him and Gildarts.

Natsu gathered as much as magic as he could. His stomach bulged out. Placing his hands over his mouth in a grasping motion, **"Fire Dragon's Roar!"** Natsu released a large quantity of flames from his mouth that traveled straight at Gildarts.

 _You have progressed well in the past years, Natsu._ Gildarts smiled as he stuck his palm toward the stream of flames. As soon as the attack made contact with his hand, it started to disassemble attack into tiny pieces flames as it slowly started to die down. Finally dispersing into the air.

Natsu panted heavily. His eyes were wide in shock at seeing one of his strongest attacks being broken so easily. He knew Gildarts was the strongest mage, but still, he should had at the least make him move from his stance.

"Wonderful, Natsu." Gildarts voice snapped Natsu from his thoughts. He looked to see the older man looking at him with pride. It confused him, he lost miserably. Why would he look at him like that?

"You have grown stronger than ever before." Gildarts spoke, and it was the truth. He still remembered how the little brat would challenge him to fight and get beat up within seconds and by simply a flick in the forehead, however, now he had to use his magic and fists to beat him, "I wasn't wrong when I decided to make you my apprentice."

"R-really?" Natsu was slightly surprised by his new mentor's praise. His face broke into a massive grin that Gildarts returned with his own.

"I will tell you this, Natsu. I am not an easy teacher, my training will be very brutal! Do you think you can handle it?" Gildarts smirked evilly.

Natsu wasn't fazed as he just continued to grin, "Bring it on, old man!"

The Crash user's eyebrows twitched in annoyance at the disrespectful remark, "That's not good. You should call me Sensei or Shishou." he needed the respect of his student.

"No way in hell, old man."


	2. Natsu return to Fairy Tail!

**"Natsu!" -Person talking.**

 _"Natsu!"-_ **Person thinking.  
**

 **"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" -Magic.**

 **This chapter is the mix of the Fairy Tail scan 299 (Lone Journey) and my own. Please leave a review**

 **The Pairing: Natsu x Erza x Mirajane x Ultear (I decided that Ultear will be the last girl.) I will only have those 3 girls in the Harem.**

 **I do not own Fairy Tail or any of it's characters. It is owned by Mashima.**

* * *

 **One Morning in Magnolia  
**

* * *

Makarov Dreyar, the Third Master of the Fairy Tail Guild was trying his best to contain his happiness at the letter he received this morning. Still, some of it still showed on his wizened face. After all, one of his beloved brats will finally come back home after being away for a long time.

It has been two long years since Natsu Dragneel had left the Guild with Gildarts Clive on a training trip. Fairy Tail wasn't the same without the Dragon Slayer. The guild wasn't invigorating and lively as it was known for. The only thing that occupied the guild now was gloom and some sadness. It was as if Fairy Tail lost it's heart in the form of Natsu. Two weeks after Natsu's departure, many had seeked him to ask about the whereabouts of the Dragon Slayer. He expected it and fabricated a story about Natsu taking a long mission that would help the guild in the long run.

Makarov was thankful that Mirajane knew about Natsu's training trip or he was sure she would've died at that very moment from a broken heart after hearing that. Even so, he often caught her staring at the guild doors with a look of longing on her face. Erza was the same, although she hid her sadness by taking mission after mission without any break. Makarov had to wonder if she was trying to break some kind of record. But, this will be over soon as the letter he received from Gildarts this morning told him that Natsu finished his training and was coming back tomorrow. He idly wondered how much stronger Natsu did get after all this time.

Makarov was jolted out of his thoughts by a knock on the office's door. "Enter." he spoke and the door opened. He glanced up to see Mirajane entering his office with papers in her hand.

Mirajane Strauss had changed dramatically within these last two years, she no longer acted like she did before a certain dragon slayer had left with Gildarts. Instead of her casual black spaghetti strapped tee and black pants, she now wore a gorgeous pink dress, and completely let her hair down rather than keeping it in a ponytail with a short, upward ponytail obtained by gathering and tying the hair that covered her forehead. The most change that happened to her was her personality. Instead of being a feared person, temperamental and foul mouthed. She become a loving and caring person who treated her friends, and even strangers, with kindness. She also played a motherly role within the guild, and even become a barmaid of the guild hall. Every person in Fairy Tail has rarely seen her in a bad mood. Makarov knew that she would be really happy about Natsu's return.

"Good Morning, Master!" greeted Mirajane with a sweet smile that would brighten up anyone's day.

"Good morning, my child. How have you been?" Makarov greeted back and asked the white haired beauty.

"Fine! You know, working at the bar and... " she trailed off as she lost her smile and looked at the floor.

Makarov immediately understood what she was implying and voiced it, "And you can't stop thinking about when Natsu will return."

"Y-yes."

The old man grinned. He wasn't planning to tell anybody about Natsu's return, but he would make an exception for now, "I have good news in that regard." he said as Mirajane looked at him with hopefulness in her blue eyes, "Natsu will here tomorrow."

He didn't regret his words as her bright blue eyes slowly shrank in size as the younger woman seemed to be repeatedly going over every single syllable, they then lit up with joy and happiness that Makarov didn't think could exist. She brought her hands up to her mouth as she tried to hold back tears of joy but small droplet gathered at the corner of each eye, "F-finally.. He will come back…" she wishpered as she wiped her eyes, "I'm going to tell the others!" she squealed and was about to leave the office and tell the guild about the great news but, Makarov stopped her.

"Wait. No need to tell them anything." he told her as he smiled gently. It was good seeing his child happy, however, he wanted this to be a surprise.

"B-but why?" she asked, concerned. The guild members were all worried sick about Natsu and these news would lift their spirits.

"I want it to be a surprise for them. Don't worry. They will only wait for tomorrow, that's all." Makarov grinned before his eyes fell on the sack of paper in the barmaid's hand, "Is there a reason why you did come here?" he had a bad feeling for some reason

"Oh Yes!" Mirajane's voice immediately turned cheerful. More cheerful than Makarov remembered it the two last years, "Erza-chan completed her mission and with little property damage!"

A shiver went down the old man's spine at the last part.

"W-what was the 'little' damage?" he asked nervously as dread slowly filled him.

"Just half a Town! Nothing more!" she closed her eyes and chirped cheerfully making it painfully obvious that she was happy about the destruction. She was snapped out of it by a loud thud, opening her eyes, she saw the Master of Fairy Tail had thumped his forehead on the desk, mumbling something about never retiring.

"Master?" Mirajane titled her head to her right side with questions marks above it.

Elsewhere

Near Magnolia Town, there was a small city named Acalypha. The city was best known for the presence of the merchant guild "Love and Lucky".

At the outskirts of the city. A lone figure was slowly walking toward it. This figure was no other than Natsu Dragneel, the Fire Dragon Slayer of Fairy Tail that left for two years. Natsu changed quite a lot over the years. He was no longer the wild boy with a toothy grin. He was a man with a better body, more inches in height and a graceful posture as he walked.

His still had his pink hair, the only difference was that it was slicked back in the same fashion as his mentor; Gildarts. He was carrying a blue bag over his right shoulder. His outfit also changed, gone from his sleeveless, gold trimmed, black waistcoat and white knee-length trousers, to a long, black, high-collared cloak with shoulder plates covering his whole body aside from his feet. Beneath the cloak, he wore black combat boots with dark blue baggy pants tucked into them. The pants were held by a large leather black belt around his waist. The bottom of his outfit was completed by armored waist-guard bearing plates similar to the ones on his shoulders. Moving up, his torso was clothed in a black sleeveless muscle shirt trimmed with a light-colored flame pattern. Finally, he had his white scale-patterned scarf wrapped around his waist instead of his neck.

Natsu grinned with joy at being only one day away from his beloved guild. Only one day walking and he would finally return to Fairy Tail. He missed the sight of the building he loved more than anything in the world. He also missed the laughter and cheerful smiles of his friends and comrades. After everything he has seen and been through, he was going to see the people he called his family. He wondered how Erza, Mirajane and Happy were doing and how much they changed over these two years. He felt a bright smile on his face as he imagined the changes that would happen to Mirajane and Erza. Last time he saw them, they were breathtakingly beautiful and after two years, Natsu could only imagine how much they had grown. He knew that if anyone who knew him could hear his thoughts, they would freak out. He was known to be oblivious to women's beauty after all. However, In his travel, Gildarts didn't just trained him to become stronger. No, he also taught him everything he knew about women -which was a lot- and how to handle them.

Of course it didn't mean that he become a damned pervert and womanizer like Fairy Tail's Ace! He would beat the shit out of anyone who dare to call him that! He was just tempted by the soft tempting flesh of beautiful women. So it was only fair that he would think of Erza and Mirajane, the two most beautiful women in Fairy Tail.

A sudden scream brought him out of his thoughts. Glancing to his right where the scream come from. Twenty meters from his place were three snarling, horned monsters surrounding a quivering and trembling woman. His eyes turned into hearts as he spotted how beautiful the woman was. She had light purple and sparkling blue eyes. She possessed a curvaceous hourglass figure that was covered by a tight skin purple shirt and a light colored skirt. It immediately caught the Dragon Slayer's attention.

Natsu bolted at an electric speed and within an instant he was in front of the woman with his arms spread open protectively. The woman let out a startled yelp as he appeared in front of her and the monsters looked momentarily surprised before it twisted into anger at being interrupted. They immediately lunged at him.

Natsu's trained eyes scanned them. Two were in front of him and one behind. He lifted his right and caught the first monster's fist in a vice-like grip and twisted it upward, making the creature cry out in discomfort. Still holding on to the fist, he tossed the monster behind him. He whirled around again to smash his left elbow into the second monster's gut, knocking the air out of it before he could scream in pain and forcing it to kneel down, deciding to knock it out, he grabbed it's head and slammed it on the ground with a hard shove. Standing up again, Natsu backfistedthe third monster without looking, sending it flying in the air until it smashed into a boulder.

Letting out a sigh, he turned to face the woman, his lips stretching into a charming smile only for his jaw to promptly drop in shock as he saw the woman running away from him screaming all the way. He harrumphed in annoyance that the woman was ungrateful and didn't fall for him for his gallant rescue, Natsu grabbed his bag and continued on his way toward Acalypha City.

Upon entering the town, he noticed that the city wasn't like he remembered. To be more precise, many of the villagers appeared to be saddened and downtrodden for some reasons. Some were sitting on the ground with gloomy auras around them and some were almost in tears. Natsu frowned, _Something's fishy here_.. He thought as he walked aimlessly on the streets. A sudden thud in front of him was enough to catch his attention. Looking ahead his eyes widened a little as he spotted the woman he saved earlier. She was pointing and looking at him with surprise written over her face.

"You!" she squealed before offering him an apologetic smile, "Sorry about earlier!" she quickly got out in one breath as she bowed repeatedly at the hips, "I shouldn't have run away like that!"

Natsu sweat dropped as he noticed that she bowed fourteen times in a second, "It's alright! No harm was done." he waved his hand in trying to calm her down.

"And Thank you for saving me, mister Umm.." she trailed off.

"Natsu. Natsu Dragneel." he said and flashed her a charming smile while sweeping a hand through his hair.

The woman blushed prettily as she took in his handsome features, "I-I'm Yuki! It's nice to make your aquitance, Natsu-san!" she bowed again.

"Likewise." Natsu bowed back before his face got serious causing the Yuki to take a step back in fear at the heated stare she got, "I noticed that people were depressed for some reasons. Can you tell me why?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a sad frown crossed the woman's face eliciting a raised eyebrow from Natsu, "Two weeks ago, our town has been attacked by a vicious monster. It killed many townspeople. And our city has no mages in it. We only have a merchant guild." she explained as tears were welling up in her eyes.

Natsu felt bad for them and decided he would help them. It was also a good warm up for him before he went to Fairy Tail. Though, there was something that confused him about the situation, "Why didn't you send a request to a magic guild?" he knew that id they sent a request to Fairy Tail, this monster would have been already dead by now.

"We requested from many guild's. But each one of the mages that were sent to the beast never returned."

Natsu whistled. _So they were all killed_ huh He thought, "Alright. Can you tell me where I could find the Mayor?" he requested, causing her to look up at him in confusion.

"The Mayor? Any reason why?"

"I will help you eradicate the monster."

Yuki seemed to perk up as she heard this, and a hopeful smile spread on her face, "Really?! We have been waiting for someone to rid us of that creature! Thank you so much!" she bowed again.

Natsu grinned at her, "Save your thanks after I beat the beast."

Yuki wiped her eyes, "Please follow me." she turned and walked with Natsu behind her.

The Dragon Slayer's eyes went downward at the Yuki's backside. He got a small nose bleed as he looked at her butt which strained her skirt. _That's one fine butt!_

Later

The two come to a stop in front of a building. From the look of it, Natsu concluded that it was the merchant guild and Its name was "Love and Lucky". It was a moderately sized guild, with various trees around it. The building was composed of one main corridor, with four sections around the corridor. It's composed of bricks and what appeared to concrete. Below the brick portion, there was several pillars decorating the frontal view. There was also dozens of windows on the guild building. There was also a gate grid in the guild's entryway.

Gildarts's apprentice looked at Yuki from the corner of his eye, "That's a guild. I thought we were going to the Mayor."

"Actually, the Mayor of the town is the Master of the guild too." The woman explained as she motioned for him to enter.

The interior of the guild was littered with various tables and shelves, both filled with papers and books. There was some windows and desks near the corners. Pillars made of concrete and woods were seem by the entire hall and some information plates in the ceiling. Natsu noticed that the entire Guild was silent as some people sitting on tables in depression.

"Yuki!" a voice echoed from as a man walked to them, he was a rather fit man. He wore a nice purple suit, "You have been gone for a long time. Did something happen?"

"Oh Master Trishula!" greeted Yuki with a smile, "I run into some trouble on the way back, but Natsu-san helped me!" she pointed at Natsu as she told the Master and the Mayor about everything that happened.

"I see.." Trishula spoke after Yuki finished her tale, "Thank you for helping one of our members." he bowed to a suddenly sheepish Natsu.

"That was nothing, really. Anyone would have done the same." The Dragon Slayer rubbed the back of his head.

Trishula smiled at the humble attitude of Natsu before clearing his throat, "So you want to help us get rid of the beast?"

Natsu nodded his head confirming the man's words, "Yes, but I would like more information on the monster if you can provide that." he requested. One of the things that Gildarts beat into his head was to get proper informations before completing a mission.

"Of course I can." Trishula's face grew serious. "The creature appears only at night, and showed up around two weeks ago, and slaughtered an entire family. We didn't even know about their deaths until two days later. We tried to stop it, several of the town's strongest men marched into the forest at night and sadly... They didn't return." The mayor's face grew grim as he continued the story. "We foolishly sent another group out there in hopes that stopping it would work this time. They failed. They were wiped out. My town is in danger and I cannot stand for it anymore! Please! do what you must! Just stop this beast!" he begged as he bowed to his hips as was everyone who heard the man speaking.

Natsu sadly looked at them before letting a sigh, "Don't worry! Just leave it to me!" he pointed at himself and grinned brightly causing cheers and loud shouts of gratitude to echo throughout the entire Guild.

Later That Night

Natsu marched through the mountain where the lair of the monster was located. His footsteps slowly come to stop in from of an entrance for large cave, _Hmmm. I can feel bloodlust and killing intent from the cave. It must this beast they were talking about._ He mentally thought as he entered the cave. He lit up his hand in flames as the cave was dark. He bumped into something and looked down to see a skeleton at his feet, not just that, but there was a lot of them along with animal skeletons sprawled across the ground. Looking up, his face twisted in disgust as he saw more corpses and skeletons plastered to the ceiling.

He stopped dead in his tracks as a massive shadow appeared in front of him. He held his hand at the Shadow as the Flames got brighter and saw what it was. It was a massive black and white humanoid beast with two scaly arms with a black horn above its head. It's ears were pointed up and it had two dark and white eyes.

Natsu was disgusted by it's appearance and the drool coming out of its mouth only intensified the feeling, "Man, you're one ugly beast."

After he finished, he had to leap backwards in the air as the monster's slammed into the ground, creating a hole and causing it to shake slightly.

"Woah!" Natsu shouted as he landed gracefully on the ground. a wide smirk appeared on his face as he looked up at the beast, "I'm all fired up!" he quickly held out a palm and from it, a white net-like pattern of Crash Magic was sent at the beast.

Natsu raised an eyebrow when he saw the attack, slam into the beast, but instead of turning into cubes. His magic was completely nullified. _Hmm What's that? This beast can use Nullification Magic? That would explain why all the mages sent here were defeated easily._ He thought, but smirked when he saw the area behind the beast was turned into small cubes, it looked like his small attack was discharged behind the beast.

"Since magical attacks won't work on you. I will use my fists!" declared Natsu with a grin as he dashed at the beast. Within an instant, he was in front of it punching it in the chest, knocking it back several feet away before it come to a stop.

The beast roared and swung its claws down. Natsu decided to take the hit and see how strong it was. He crossed his arms above his head as the clawed hand slammed into them. The ground beneath him cracked from the blow, but there was no indication that Natsu actually felt anything from the powerful assault.

The beast seemed momentarily surprised at how easily the Pinkette absorbed its blow that it left the clawed hand down. Meanwhile Natsu straightened and swiftly appeared in front of the beast's stomach. With his right arm. He elbowed, the beast in the stomach, causing the monster to cough and stumble back. Natsu took two steps back, before leaping in the air and spinning. Once he gained enough momentum, he lashed out with a kick, sending the Beast flying down the area, creating a hole and causing debris to fly everywhere inside the cave.

Not quit done with the assault. He cocked his arm back as he imbued his fist with Crash Magic. He hit the beast on its back with a powerful strike. A white light washed over the cave as it shook. The entire place was reduced into small cubes that flew off in different places.

The Dragon Slayer landed on a rock before his Crash Magic destroyed it, causing him to fell on his backside rather painfully, _Damn lack of control! I can imagine why Magnolia split the town in two only for Gildarts._ He thought as he straightened up and dusted his clothes off.

He looked around trying to find the beast or what was left of it. As he searched, he found the Black horn of the monster buried into the crashed ground. Grinning, he lifted it up and looked at it for a few seconds, _Well I guess the job was completed.._ He thought as he began making his way back to Acalypha.

Later

Everyone in the town was waiting for Natsu's return, they were praying that he defeated the monster that terrorized their town. They were caught by surprise when a massive black horn slammed into the ground in front of them. Silence filled the area as the villagers stared at the horn.

"What happened?!"

"Who won?!"

Everyone was shouting as they stared at the horn, hoping for something to happen. Then, Natsu emerged in front of them, completely unscathed and with a grin on his face. It took a minute for the villagers to let everything they've just seen sink in.

"He won?!"

"He won!"

"We finally got rid of that damned beast!"

"He doesn't have even a single scratch on him!"

"Natsu-sama! You're so cool!"

Soon the whole village cried out in joy, relief and gratitude, soon they were throwing a party in his honor.

Sometimes Later

The party was in full swing. Dancing, singing, music, and everyone smiling and laughing their hearts out. Everyone was happy. Natsu was having the time of his life as he ate everything he could from the feast while drinking barrels of booze.

"Spare us!" three cooks shouted in pure terror as Natsu ordered them to make him more food. He ate so much that they thought the city won't have anything to eat for years!

"HAHAHAHA~ You wimps!" the Fire and Crash mage laughed with a drunken blush on his cheeks as he drunk another barrel of booze. He completely forgot to burn off the alcohol from his system and now he was as drunk as Cana when she really get into it. It wasn't his fault that he took one or two of Gildarts's features.

"Let's party more!" he shouted out as he whooped and ran in circles, much to the shock of the watching villagers. He slammed into people causing them to fly in the air. The buildings he crashed into were disassembled into small cubes, but he didn't seem to care as he laughed more and increased his speed. However, as he was running, he was accidentally tripped by a rock and fell down face first. Not even noticing, his Crash Magic began to waver off him in the center of town, causing huge cracks to split the earth and destroy almost every surrounding building.

Each one of the villagers were stunned as they watched their buildings disassemble into pieces along with the Love and Lucky guild building.

Later

Natsu groaned as he got up from the ground. After destroying almost the city, he was swiftly kicked out of it. Despite this, he smiled before he laughed as he marched toward the forest. He will sleep a little before going to home!

The Next Day

A man ran as fast as his legs could take him. He had to tell them. He had to tell them. He was back. The guy who was gone for two long years returned. This was the biggest news any of them heard in a long time. It was just a coïncidence, but he was in Acalypha when people partied. He didn't get much informations as the city was almost wrecked and he immediately knew who could do something like that. It had to be Natsu! There was no mistake! He ran past the many people swarming the markets, pushing into some of them by accident and apologizing, but never stopped running. By the time, he arrived in front of his destination, he felt exhausted and drained. However, he couldn't stop. He needed to tell them. Using any energy he had left, he stormed through the doors of the building, alerting everyone inside. They all stared at him, waiting for whatever it was he was going to say.

"H-He's back..." The man started, taking deep breaths, "He's back...Natsu...he's...he's back!"

The sound of a silverware breaking into pieces was heard. The eyes of all were widened at the news.

Makarov couldn't help but smirk. _So, you come back, huh? Natsu...I wonder how much you've grown lad._

Mirajane almost burst into tears. She put her hands over her mouth to hide the bright smile she had on her face. She couldn't wait for him to arrive, the last two years were hell without him.

"O-Oi...stop joking around..." Gray was the first to speak after a long moment of silence, "N-Natsu has been missing for over two years...why would he suddenly show up now..."

"B-But I'm not lying..." Niggy retorted. "I'm certain it is him..."

"Oh? Where's your proof?" Elfman asked, crossing his arms.

"W-Well, I don't have physical evidence...but I was in Acalypha when the villagers were partying for some reasons. When I asked, they told that someone helped them by Slaying a beast. I didn't get to ask them who it was because the city was almost destroyed.." Niggy explained his source.

"Please...that could have been any mage..." Gray scoffed, "...although it does sound like something Natsu would do...but it couldn't be him..."

"But..."

"A rumor is just a rumor." Makarov spoke. "However, in every rumor, there is always a shred of truth behind it." he felt bad about not telling his brats about Natsu's return, but he wanted to see their reactions. Although, he was still a little unnerved by the news of Acalypha's destruction and hoped that it wasn't Natsu.

"Master..." Mirajane whispered. "...Do you think Natsu is really come back?" she asked loud enough to get everyone's attention.

He closed his eyes and everyone in the guild were on the edge of their seats, waiting for Fairy Tail's Master to speak, "I'm an old man! What the hell do I know! HAHAHAHA!" Most of the members fell in shock at his response as he continued to laugh.

Mirajane sweat dropped, "Oh Master..."

They were all shaken out of their shock by the doors bursting open. From it appeared Natsu in a flash stunning them into silence, "Yo! I'm back!" he shouted with a grin as looked around the guild and just like he predicted, they were all shocked to see him in the flesh. He couldn't help but give a smirk at their expressions.

"I-I-It's really him..." Nab was the first to speak, not believing what his eyes were seeing.

"S-See, I told you guys..." Niggy told the others.

"Natsu!" Happy shouted as he flew into Natsu's chest, "You meanie! Why didn't you tell me you're leaving?!"

"Sorry buddy! I needed to do something and didn't want to bother you with it." he apologized before he was surprised to hear another familiar voice.

"N-natsu..Is that really you?" Mirajane asked as she took a step forward. not believing her own eyes.

Natsu looked at the woman in front of him and was shocked, _Mirajane?!_ he mentally thought as he observed the beauty in front of him

Mirajane smiled and it grew as she felt tears start to form at the edge of her eyes. Natsu was surprised by the tears that were slowly developing and panicked. He knew there was a possibility that tears were gonna be involved, but he didn't think Mirajane would be the one to shed tears. After all, she was a strong and proud woman! "Ah...Mira...don't cr-" He didn't get to finish as the white haired Take Over mage ran up and gave him a hug. Natsu was surprised at the hug, but he could understand why she did so. After all, he was gone for two whole years. He felt his heart skip a beat as a wramth and a feeling he wasn't familiar with spread inside him. Looking down at the woman, he felt heat rush to his. What was this feeling?

"I'm so glad your back..." Mirajane whispered as she squeezed him tighter. She was so surprised. Two years ago, he was smaller than her, but now she had to look up at him. _So warm~_ she felt like sleeping from the heat that Natsu had.

"It's good to be back." Natsu whispered back as he wrapped his arms around her smaller fame enjoying having her body pressed against his especially those two melons sized breasts. _Hmmm! Those breasts must be 36F cup!_ He thought with a silent thanks to Gildarts for teaching him how to measure woman's breasts by a single glance. He pulled back and smiled down at the woman ignoring the still shocked guild members, "You changed a lot Mira! It's like I'm seeing a complete different person!"

Mirajane giggled behind her hand, "Oh, thank you! You too have grown a lot!" she returned his sincere compliment with her own.

"I'm happy to hear to that. However, it's nothing compared to you. You're even more beautiful than I remember! How is that even possible?" he looked longingly into her shocked eyes as he bended over slightly to grasp her hand. He placed a gentle kiss on the back of her hand.

"O-oh my!" Mirajane's cheeks turned as red as Erza's hair. Her heart raced as she twirled a strand of her hair around her finger, "T-thank you.."

The others were watching with wide eyes and dropped jaws. That can't be Natsu! There was no way the dense Dragon Slayer would even flirt with a woman and Mirajane no less!

"It's not manly to touch another man's sister!" Elfman shouted as he flexed his muscles and charged at Natsu.

Natsu finally tore his gaze from the beauty in front of him to look at the charging Elfman. A grin formed on his face as he waved at his old friend, "Oh Hey Elfman! You haven't changed at all!" he said before taking a step back when Elfman reached him. He lightly tripped the white haired man with his foot. He fell and let an 'manly' shriek. Natsu smirked as he fell.

"Oh Elfman!" Mirajane was immediately at her brother's side helping him up.

Natsu shook his head as he heard Elfman déclaré that 'men didn't need help', before he looked around and spotted Gray Fullbuster. His rival and one of his closest friends. Gray's most prominent feature was his spiky black-colored hair. He has dark blue eyes, and his body was toned and muscular. He had a necklace around his neck which resembled a sword with a stone in it. The only article of clothing he wore was... A pair of pants.

"Oh isn't that Gray! How's it going?" Natsu asked with a grin that only served to make Gray angry.

"You think you can just run off and come back like nothin' happened?! Huh, flame-brain?!" Gray asked as he took his pants off.

"Oh man! You're still a lame ass son of a bitch, blue balls." Natsu retorted as he waved his hand in a bored manner.

"What the hell did you just called me?!" Gray angrily roared as he leapt at the unmoving Fire Mage. As he reached him, he felt the world spinningas Natsu twirled him with one hand before throwing him into the ceiling of the guild building. The Ice mage made a hole as he crashed into the ceiling.

"Later, OK?" Natsu said without looking up at Gray as he put his arm on his side. Gray had swirls like eyes before he slowly descended and landed face first into the floor.

"Whoa!" Mirajane breathed in awe at how fast Gray was defeated and without even the use of magic. The others weren't doing any better as could not believe in what had just happened. They just stood there with their jaws hitting the ground.

"He beat Gray easily!"

"Is that really Natsu?!"

"Who are you?! And what have you done with Natsu?!"

Natsu ignored the remarks and searched for the Master although he sported a tick mark on his forehead. _Must not beat up your friends, Natsu. Must not. You just come back!_ He was trying his best to not go and pummel them, "Mira. Where's the old man?" he asked the white haired woman who smiled brightly at him.

"He's-!" she was interrupted by Makarov, who appeared on the counter. He was wearing his usual attire, over that was his Wizard Saint robe. He was sitting on the bar cross-legged as he was setting down his mug of beer. His sight never leaving Natsu.

"I'm here my boy." spoke the old man with a smile at seeing his little brat who grow into a fine man, "You've grown strong Natsu."

"HAHAHA! Thank you!" Natsu laughed with a slight blush. It was good to get praise from his jiji.

"But.. " started Makarov as Natsu looked at him, "WHY DID YOU THINK IT WAS A GOOD IDEA TO DESTROY HALF OF ACALYPHA CITY?! DO YOU EVEN KNOW HOW MUCH I HAVE TO PAY FOR THE DAMAGE?!" he screamed as he smacked Natsu with a giant arm, sending him flying.

Natsu groaned. That old man had one hell of a fist! "Hey! I was drunk! I didn't mean to!" he yelled as he got back up.

"You saved them from a beast but you ended doing more destruction than it!" Makarov shouted back, causing Natsu to run the back of his head.

"HAHA! Sorry!"

Makarov then sighed and took and drink out of his mug. After he finished off his drink. He looked at the brat with intensity in his eyes, "How was your journey with Gildarts?" he asked. From the display of beating Gray without magic, he was sure that Natsu had grown tremendously within these two years.

The guild members who didn't know that Natsu had gone with Gildarts were completely stunned at the revelation. As they started to whisper among themselves, Natsu moved beside Makarov and sat on a chair and ordered a drink.

He was surprised to see Mirajane answering him with a 'coming', "Mirajane? You work on the bar now?" he asked.

"Yes."

"I see.. " Natsu was saddened at the news. It seemed to him that she gave up being a mage after losing Lisanna. He turned to Makarov to answer his earlier question, "Anyway, the trip was... Fine." he finished with a grimace at the end as he remembered the hell that Gildarts put him through. He called it training, but Natsu called it torture. The numerous laps around cities, the endless push-ups and the spars! Oh the spars! Natsu felt a massive shiver travel down his spine as he remembered the beating he took from the damn slave driver that was Gildarts.

Makarov raised an eyebrow with a slight glint of amusement in his eyes as he saw a cloud form above Natsu's head, "It must been quite the days." he remarked with a grin as Natsu let out a groan. His old face suddenly got serious, "What about the mission? How did the mission go?" he figured that Gildarts would want to continue the mission even though Natsu was with him.

Instead of getting a straight answer, his insides twisted when Natsu's expression darkened for an instant before returning to normal.

"We couldn't finish it. Or rather... We were interrupted." Natsu said with a sigh at the end as he thought about _that_ event that didn't let him and Gildarts continue the mission.

"What happened?" a concerned Makarov asked.

"You don't want to know." Natsu muttered as he clenched a palm into a tight fist. When he saw Makarov's curious look, he signaled that he will tell him later when Mirajane come to him with a massive tray of food in her hands.

Makarov sighed, he could wait until later, "I guess its fine. Now that you two are home safe and sound, that's all that matters." he told him getting a nod from Natsu.

"Here you go Natsu!" Mirajane cheerfully said as she put the giant tray of food in front of him. It immediately cheered Natsu up as his eyes lit up as soon as he saw the food.

"Oh man, it's been a while since I ate a decent meal! You're a life saver, Mira-chan!" anime tears streamed down Natsu's face as gingerly held a chicken in his hands. For two years, he could only eat from forests and fish from lakes! Gildarts was a cheap bastard as he preferred spending his money on booze and women instead of eating.

Mirajane giggled at his behaviour, she missed Natsu's antics. It always made her smile and laugh, "It's nothing! If you want more just tell me!" she sweetly smiled before turning around and bending over to lift a rag she dropped on the floor, "By the way, where is Gildarts?" she asked unaware of Natsu's eyes that were stuck into her shapely backside.

"Gildarts is... Great~" Natsu drawled like a drunk as he took into the magnificent sight of her butt. In his travel, he met with a lot of women, but none of them was compared to Mirajane.

"Huh?" Mirajane was confused by the reply as was Makarov, who turned and saw Natsu trying to burn holes into Mirajane's butt. A smirk appeared on his old face as he realized that Gildarts had corrupted the Dragon Slayer.

"What was that?" Mirajane asked as she straightened herself up much to the poorly hidden disappointment of Natsu.

"Nothing.. Gildarts said that he had something to take care of. Probably some women.." he muttered the last part, but Makarov heard it and laughed uproariously.

"That's just like Gildarts!" he said as he nursed another drink. Mirajane just tilted her head to her right side with questions marks above it before giving a shrung and going to the kitchen. Makarov leaned down to Natsu and whispered, "So like Master like apprentice, huh?" he smirked.

Natsu took a moment to understand what the old man was implying before he let out a scoff, "As if I would become a womanizer like that old drunk! I just appreciate the female body.." he said as Makarov deadpaned.

"Right." Makarov said before a teasing grin stretched his lips, "So how many women in the two years?" he asked like an eager child.

"Uhh.. " Natsu didn't know how to answer. One of these days, Gildarts found that he was still a Virgin and didn't know the facts of sexuality and reproduction. He declared that no apprentice of the 'great' Ace of Fairy Tail would be. He explained everything with details. Then he took him and made him lose his virginity. Since then, Natsu had slept with some women from time to time just to release some stress. And now, Makarov was asking him. He knew that if he ever tell him, the old man won't let him live it down. Luckily, he was saved from an embarrassing fate when the doors burst open and from it, Erza Scarlet entered with her usual stotic face.

"I have returned." she announced as she walked into the center on the building, everyone in the guild was paralyzed in fear and no one noticed a small cowering Gray who slowly crawled his way out of the guild. Natsu looked at her and mentally whistled in amazement. Like Mirajane, Erza had blossomed into an extremely beautiful woman. She still had her armor on and her hair was longer than Natsu remembered, "Master. I completed the... Mission.." she stopped in mid sentence as she caught the sight of Natsu sitting on a chair with his legs crossed, "Natsu?" her tone was a mix of shock and hope.

"Yo Erza! It's so good to see you again!" Natsu greeted as he got up and slowly walked to her and stopped a few feet in front of her. He chuckled at her shocked expression. Did she think that he won't return or something?

Erza finally regained her composure and smiled a little happily, "Mmm it's good to have you back too." She responded, her smile never leaving her face. The others watched the two nervously, wondering what was going to happen next between them, "When did you return?"

"A couple of hours ago." he simply replied with a grin.

Erza checked him up and down. The first thing she noticed was that he was taller than her. His height was the same as Gray's. His hair was longer and his clothes also changed to more appealing ones. instead of a rebelious then who stood like street fighter, he stood like a proud and experienced warrior. Adding to that, the aura he had was that of true power. Erza had to admit that he was quite handsome. More than all the men she had met so far. Without any warning, she clenched her right hand into a fist and sent it toward his face shocking many of the viewers.

They thought that the fist would connect straight at Natsu's face, perhaps breaking a few bones in the process. However, none of them would have expected Natsu to raise his arm up and block Erza's fist with the palm of his hand without much of an effort. Erza's eyes widened. She was stunned. She couldn't believe Natsu blocked her attack so easily. Was this the same Natsu, who challenged her once and got beaten so easily? Did he become so strong at Gildarts's apprenticage that he could beat her?

A mysterious smile made its way onto her beautiful face as she eyed him. Unexpectedly, she threw another punch at Natsu and he blocked it again. He looked confused, but didn't voice it. She continued throwing punches at him. He was able to block each punch successfully and without moving from his spot which caused everyone in the guild to be shocked at the display. Natsu however, was still confused, why was she punching him. Did he do something wrong? No, he didn't do anything that bad that would cause her to do this. Then again, he wondered if she always punched him because she just wanted to.

They repeated the same movements as Natsu began moving back. Instead of blocking, he was dodging the blows easily. They traveled around the guild. Those who were in the way were either punched by one of Erza's wild swings or ran away from their path. Erza then stopped. Natsu hoped she was finished as he didn't want to hurt her by accident, but unfortunately for him, he was wrong. Instead of a punch, Erza tried a kick. Natsu was momentarily surprised by this, but he blocked it with his right forearm. However, the kick was only distraction as Erza tried to uppercut him in the jaw and Natsu didn't miss a beat as he just leaned his head back. Erza groaned at the fact that she missed again and her strategy failed, "Tch!" She scoffed and went back to throwing punches.

"Erza-chan...stop this already..." Mirajane cried out, hoping to stop the ridiculousness, but she was ignored as Erza continued to attack Natsu.

"You've grown a lot Natsu..." Erza suddenly said in such a soft voice that it almost made Natsu take the next punch. He smiled, so she was just testing him he thought as he dodged a jab. He decided to stop it now before she could use her magic and wreck the guild. As Erza threw a punch, he weaved his head to the side, grabbed her wrist and much to her shock, pulled her toward him in a hug. Erza didn't know what to say or do at the sudden hug. The other guild members looked in shock as well as they thought Natsu was either crazy or stupid, or even both.

"That's means a lot coming from you." he whispered into her ear as he tightened his hug, "I missed you a lot, Erza."

"I.. I missed you too." she softly responded as she wrapped her arms around him. She almost squealed when she felt the two strong hands that encircled her waist went down to rest on her butt. Natsu grinned perversely as he squeezed both her butt cheeks. The action caused Erza to close her eyes slightly and let out a small moan before she pulled away from the hug to look up at Natsu with a dark blush dusted her check, "Natsu are trying to steal my innocence?" she asked her hair covering her eyes but not quite her blush she had. The others could only look in absolute shock at the audacity of the Dragon Slayer. Mirajane looked away with a slight frown while Makarov smiled as he mentally cheered for Natsu but didn't dare to do it outloud in fear of Erza's wrath.

"Whatever you're talking about? Natsu asked in fake ignorance as he continued to squeeze Erza's big and round butt. Just like he thought, Erza had beaten Mirajane in the butt department.

Erza lightly growled, though she couldn't deny that she felt good from the touch, "Natsu either remove your hands from my ass or prepare to part with both of them." She said darkly her blush also growing darker.

Natsu looked down at his hands that were on her butt and chuckled as he slowly removed them, "Oops! Sorry, my hands sometimes do things on their own." he explained as she nodded with a cold stare on her face. Natsu grinned as he thought about something, "But you sure got a very nice ass, Erza! I wonder what kind of panties you wear?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a dark aura exploded from the knight. It was so dense that some nearby members fainted and others ran for their lives. Erza's eyes glowed red as she glared at Natsu who smiled but with a nervous glint in his eye.

"Well, goodbye!" he said before running away from Erza who followed him while waving around a very rusty and huge sword.

"COME BACK AND TAKE YOUR PUNISHEMENT LIKE MAN NATSU!" she screamed as she ran behind him.

"That will keep me from becoming a man!" Natsu shouted back as he dodged a trail of swords, "Why don't you re-quippe into one of your skimpy armors?!" he laughed as she continued to throw more threats and swords at him.

It was great to be back.

The Next Day

"So where are you three taking me?" Natsu asked the three walking in front of him. They were Erza, Mirajane and Makarov who barged into his home and woke him in the morning. They were walking deeper into Magnolia's forest.

"We need a good spot for the fight." Makarov said as he examined the surrounding areas.

"What fight?" he asked which surprised the three as he didn't show any sign of excitement. Before, just uttering the word 'fight' would make Natsu jump up and down.

"The fight against me, Natsu." Erza annonced causing him to raise an eyebrow.

"What? Why?"

"We were curious at how strong you've gotten under Gildarts's training and Erza-chan suggested that you fight her to test your abilities." Mirajane answered as she smiled at him sweetly.

"Ugh..I get it. But why at this damn hour?" he asked as he already missed the warmth of the bed.

"Don't be lazy, Natsu. It's not good for such a young man to be lazy." Makarov chided, causing him to groan in annoyance.

After some walking, they arrived at a clearing far away from the civilization. Makarov cleared his throat and looked at the two, "Alright. This place should do it. I don't think I need to tell you the rules of the fight?" Natsu and Erza shook their heads, "Good then." he said as he and Mirajane walked away from the two.

"Good Luck!" Mirajane waved at the two elcticing a smile from them. Her and Makarov sat on a rock and waited for the show to begin.

Natsu and Erza looked intently at each other before Erza jumped back making some distance between the two of them, "Re-quipp: Flame Empress Armor!" she called as a light washed her body. When it died down, it showed Erza in a dark red predominantly, with some orange and black parts, with the first ones being shaped like flames and the second resembling Dragon's limbs. It's basically made up of three different parts: the revealing breastplate with Dragon like wings attached to it, the orange gauntlets and the Dragon claw shaped greaves. Erza's hair was tied into a pair of high, long pigtails.

Natsu whistled in amazement. This armor revealed a lot of skin! He breathed deeply before taking a stance. He placed one foot back and put one arm back while the other was in the front. The palms of his hands were opened and shaped like Dragon's Claws. The stance drew curious glances from Makarov and Mirajane.

Erza rediated herself as she lifted her Sword above her head. With one quick motion, she shot at Natsu at an incredible speed. When she reached him, she tried a slash, but Natsu shocked her when he caught the sword in between his fingers in a vice-like grip. And with an inhuman force, he swiped her to his left side by the sword in his hand. Erza lost her balance which gave Natsu the chance to deliver an open palm strike to her side, sending the scarlet haired woman away.

She barely straightened herself as she panted from the heavy blow. She had no doubts that three or four more of them would be enough to knock her out. Standing up again, she flew at him again, but this time, she sent a jet of flames at him, but she was a little stunned when the Flames were sucked into him.

Natsu extended his right palm out, with his fingers pointing upward and curled slightly. He struck the sword that reached him with the heel of his hand. He rotated his waist and shot forward his right side. The movements added more power to the strike. The sword gave in to the strain of the force and broke into pieces much to Erza's shock and astonishment.

 _H-he broke my sword!_ she thought in shock before it turned into pain as she was struck into the stomach with the heel of Natsu's left hand. She was sent dragging against the ground until her back hit a tree, breaking it in half. She stood back up and looked at what was left of her Sword. Only the hilt of it stayed safe. _This armor didn't have any effect on him._ she thought before light envelopped her body again, "Heaven's Wheel Armor!" the armor was silver in color. She had plated armor covering her chest, with a large metal flower over it, and she wore a large billowing skirt that has metal plating in the upper area. Her stomach and neck were uncovered, and she had large metal wings that appeared to be made of individual blades, as well as a wing-like headpiece. She had two swords in her hands. Using her flight ability, she flew and shouted out, "Circle Sword!" requiping swords, she has them circle around her befor the commanding, "Dance, My Blades!" the swords then began spinning rapidly around her. With a motion, she sent them flying towards her Natsu in a disc formation.

Natsu grinned as he watched the swords fly at him. Holding his palm out at the direction of the sword disc, "These tricks don't work on me, sadly." he said before sending a net-like pattern of Crash Magic at the attack. It connected with the blades creating a very large shockwave. Some broken blades and chips flew around the clearing.

"Crash Magic?!" Erza exclaimed in shock as she landed on the ground.

"Of course. Did you think I wouldn't learn some things from Gildarts?" Natsu smirked at her shocked face, "Gildarts decided to teach me his magic. While I'm not as proficient in it as him, I still can negate attacks."

Mirajane and Makarov were sitting and watching in shock and awe. They couldn't believe that Natsu had become this strong. He was literally beating Erza, one of Fairy Tail's strongest without even breaking a sweat.

"Incredible!" Mirajane clasped her hands together in front of her mouth.

"Indeed. And he even leaned Crash Magic in such a short time." Makarov said with pride in his tone. Natsu completely changed, he didn't just charge in blindly like he used to, instead, he was carefully intercept attacks and come up with the counter for them.

Erza panted a little. She was in awe at the strength that Natsu gained from his training. It was like he was on a complete different level from her. It's like she was doing nothing and he was training for decades. _His speed is unbelievable and he can use Crash Magic too.. How can I beat him?._ she thought frantically searching for a solution. She took a deep breath before shouting out, "Morning Star Armor!" the armor seemed to be mainly composed of a leather-like material, sported many feather-shaped decorations, including the short cape, the pauldrons protruding from under it, and the cloth circling Erza's waist, held up by a simple belt on the front. She doned a one piece suit revealing her legs, whose upper part was covered by fishnet leggings, and with high-heeled armored greaves with large knee guards covering her calves. Her arms were heavily armored as well. In this outfit, Erza's hair was styled in tangled buns on top of her head, and she was armed with a pair of simple swords with cross-shaped hand-guards, getting larger near the edges, and blades which seem to lack the standard cutting edges.

She charged at Natsu again whom rediated himself for her attack. Just like she was about to attack, she did something unexpected, using her Light Emission that the armor granted, she emitted a bright light from herself momentarily blinding Natsu which gave her the chance to attack, "Photon Slicer!" she shouted as she pointed the twin swords towards her Natsu, she released a massive blast at him causing an explosion to occur.

She landed on the ground softly before dropping to one knee feeling exhausted from her constant use of magical power. She waited for the smoke to clear to see what her attack had done to Natsu, but instead she felt a hand on her neck. Turning around, her eyes widened in shock when she saw Natsu looking down at her with a serious look.

"Looks like it's my win." he said.

Erza continued to look at him for a few moments before sighing softly, "Yes. Congratulations, Natsu."

Natsu only chuckled at her, "It was a good fight. Let's fight again sometimes!" he grinned at her before helping her to her feet. They were about to head back to Mirajane and Makarov, but they saw them already making their way to them.

"That was incredible Natsu!" Mirajane smiled brightly as she praised his skills.

"Thanks!" Natsu rubbed the back of his head in an embarrassed manner.

"What do you think, Erza?" Makarov asked the knight.

"He is very strong Master. He deserve the S-Class status."

"Well then there isn't really any question anymore," Makarov started. "Natsu my boy, welcome to S-class."

Natsu just looked at Makarov blankly for a moment, he then gave a slight chuckle, "Thanks Jiji…" he said plainly.


End file.
